I’ve always assumed that undocumented immigrants were wage earners. I was wrong. Hundreds of thousands of them have built businesses here. Those businesses tend to be small because it takes capital to grow a business, and raising capital can draw unwanted attention. That’s what happened to Elon, according to an October, 2024 article in the Washington Post. The Post interviewed Elon’s business associates, reviewed court records and got copies of company contracts to tell the following:In 1995 Elon and his brother went to California to start a business, but the two Canadians did not have legal work status. Like most undocumented immigrants they had little capital so they slept in their office to save money. They worked hard and by 1996 the business was taking off. Investors were ready to put in money, but when they learned that Elon and his brother were undocumented they protected themselves with an unusual funding agreement. If the brothers did not get legal work status in 45 days the investors could reclaim their money. “We don’t want our founder being deported” one director was quoted as saying.
We don’t know if Elon met that 45 day deadline. People tell me getting legal work status is a long, slow process that takes years. We do know that he wasn’t deported, and in 2002 the business was sold for $300 million. Elon became a U.S. citizen that same year.
Elon denies the Post’s account but has given little detail about his journey from being Canadian to becoming a U.S. citizen. Elon’s brother is more candid. In 2013 he told interviewers that when the two brothers started their first business in the U.S. “We were illegal immigrants.”
The Post article tells us that the world’s richest man started his business career as an undocumented immigrant. What an inspiration to the hundreds of thousands of undocumented immigrants who have built businesses here. I wish Elon would share details of his immigration journey. I’m sure that his fellow entrepreneurs would like to know how to get legal status in 45 days. Then, with the threat of deportation removed, those small businesses might grow and bring benefits to us all.
